


State Bird of Minnesota

by tucuxi



Series: Voltron RarePair Week 2017 [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Gen, Nightmares, Pidge | Katie Holt Being a Little Shit, Slice of Life, Teasing, Voltron Rarepair Week 2017, pidgeance if you squint, state bird of Minnesota
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-15
Updated: 2017-02-15
Packaged: 2018-09-24 16:23:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9770204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tucuxi/pseuds/tucuxi
Summary: In which Lance has a nightmare and Pidge distracts him.  Also possibly blackmails him.  It's Pidge, what can you do.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Voltron Rare Pairs Week 2017, Prompt #3: Awake/Dreams.

Lance woke with a start, breathing fast and high in his chest. 

Coran isn’t dead, he told himself. He isn’t dead, so no one blames you, and it’s not your fault you didn’t notice the drone sooner. He’s not dead, no one blames you, and everything is okay. He didn’t believe himself. He was still on the castle ship, and they were probably being chased by the Galra Empire. Everything was very much not okay.

Lance tried to hear his mother’s voice in his head, imagine her strong hands rubbing his back the way she always had after a nightmare when he was a kid. ‘cálmate cariño,’ she’d always said, ‘cálmate, Lance.’

It was no good. The longer they were gone, the fainter his memory of her voice became. Lance stood and washed his face. He pulled on the paladin armor instead of his clothes. Maybe it was stupid to think the armor would keep them all safe, but it slowed his heartbeat a little bit. He’d survived one blast, and Coran was okay. They’d saved the Balmerans. They’d get through the next attack, too.

Lance blinked at his reflection. 

“Hey, handsome,” he said, winking, but his heart wasn’t in it. His stomach rumbled. It was still early, or very, very late, but maybe Hunk would rustle up some breakfast when he woke up, and Lance wouldn’t have to eat space goo.

Pidge was in the kitchen, bent over a tablet with a bowl of space goo at her side. 

“Uh,” Lance said. He’d expected everyone to be asleep. Besides, hadn’t Pidge staked out space in Green’s hangar?

“Oh, hey Lance,” Pidge said, straightening up and pushing her glasses up her nose. 

“What are you doing here?” Lance blurted out. “I mean, it’s cool, it’s a big ship, you can be anywhere you want, and hey, if you’re hungry—“ 

Pidge laughed. 

“I’m so not hungry,” she said, “Shiro just insisted I come up here and get a bowl of goo. He refused to go to sleep until he saw me actually dispense the stuff and eat a spoonful. Otherwise I’d just have lied.” 

Lance looked at the bowl of goo. Why was Shiro taking care of Pidge? 

“He’s such a dad,” Pidge said, and she sounded almost fond. 

Lance’s stomach did a slow flip. 

“Hello?” Pidge’s hand waved in front of Lance’s face. “Castle to Lance!” 

“What?” Lance stared. “Seriously, Pidge? Castle?” 

“What?” Pidge echoed, “What am I supposed to say, ‘earth to Lance?’ We’re on a giant castle ship, in case you hadn’t noticed.” 

He had noticed. That was part of the problem. 

Lance forced a laugh. “Yeah,” he said, and cast about for something to say. His mind was alarmingly blank. 

“So,” Pidge said after a minute. “You really had house geckoes?” 

Lance looked at her. 

“What?”

“You said at breakfast yesterday,” she said, shrugging. Lance remembered the conversation now. 

“I knew the US was weird,” he said, “but — you seriously had never heard of house geckoes? Hunk had them!” 

“Lance,” Pidge said, “Hunk is from Hawaii. It snows like half the year in Minnesota, and then we moved and dad was faculty and we lived on Garrison property. Did you ever see those lizards at the Garrison?” 

Now that he thought about it, Lance never had. They probably used some kind of freaky pesticide to kill them. 

“Huh.” He shook his head. “So what did you have?” he asked. “I mean, you have to have had something, right?”

“Mosquitoes,” Pidge said, “in the summer.” 

Lance waved a hand. 

“Pidge,” he said airily, “everyone has mosquitoes.”

“No, seriously,” Pidge said, “Minnesota mosquitoes are enormous.” She tapped a few buttons and pulled up two images. “Look,” she said, pointing at the one on the left, “that’s the main strain you get in Cuba — aedes aegypti — they’re, what two mm — and these,” she pointed at the one on the right, “these are the ones near my family’s house in Minnesota. They’re like three times as big and they’re thirsty motherfuckers.” 

Lance stared. 

“You’re shitting me,” he said, nightmare forgotten in his horror. “Those aren’t bugs, those are birds.” 

“Hah.” Pidge winked. “State bird of Minnesota!” 

He blinked, and she laughed outright. 

“Man, Lance, that was too easy.” She looked thoughtful. “But, hey, do you think I could convince Coran?” 

One of the mice hopped up on the table, and Lance looked at the bowl of goo. 

“All yours,” Pidge said, “go on, do your freaky mouse-feeding thing.” 

“Freaky? Pidge, I’m wounded!” Lance exclaimed, putting a hand over his heart and mock-fainting. The mouse chittered in what sounded almost like laughter. 

“Nah,” Pidge said, distracted by something flashing on her screen. “Not anymore.” 

Lance froze. 

“Oh,” Pidge said. “Sorry, Lance.” She looked down at the screen. “Shit,” she said, “I’ve got to go check on something, the crystal I salvaged is acting weird. Will you feed that goo to the mice and tell Shiro I ate it?” 

Lance shrugged. He didn’t much like the idea of lying to Shiro, even about food goo. Besides, why did Pidge care?

“I guess,” he said, “but you’re so going to owe me for lying to our fearless leader.” 

“How about I don’t tell him about your locker at the Garrison?” Pidge said, smirking. 

Lance flushed. 

“PIDGE!” he hissed. “You wouldn’t!” 

She pattered out of the kitchen, pad under her arm. 

“We’ll see,” she said, “depends on that food goo!” 

“Space goo!” Lance shot back, and her laughter followed her down the hall. 

Lance picked up a spoon, muttering under his breath. “Okay, guys,” he said, looking at the mice. “You heard the lady.”

**Author's Note:**

> [Rebloggable on my Tumblr!](http://tucuxi1.tumblr.com/post/157276073753/state-bird-of-minnesota-tucuxi-voltron)


End file.
